BTC Volatility Returns, ETH Taps 8-Month High, While CPI Sets the Stage for the Fed: Weekly Recap

The past week saw some major gains from the likes of ZEC, NEAR, DOT, ICP, and others.

What a wild end to the business week we just experienced after the release of the final piece of the Fed puzzle – the CPI data. But before we get into the details of what happened earlier today, let’s quickly recap the events from the past week.

A week ago, the US jobs report for July had come out, which was substantially stronger than anticipated. Markets reacted immediately as it gave the Fed more leeway to hike the rates in the upcoming FOMC meeting on September 15-16. BTC was already stopped at $82,400 earlier that day, but the report led to another massive sell-off, and the asset slumped below $79,000 in minutes.

It rebounded during the weekend and even challenged $80,000 once again on Monday, but to no avail. The subsequent leg down was more gradual and led to a drop to $77,600 a day later. The bulls tried to retake control and drove BTC north to $79,400 twice on Wednesday, but the asset couldn’t push through.

Instead, it slipped to $77,000 after the first inflation data of the week, the PPI. More volatility was expected today before and after the release of the CPI data, which is arguably the most important part of the Fed puzzle. Once the numbers came out, which actually matched expectations almost perfectly, BTC reacted with an immediate leg down to a three-week low of $76,000.

However, the bulls stepped up and helped the cryptocurrency recover the losses within minutes. Moreover, they stepped up on the gas pedal in the following hours, driving the asset north to nearly $80,000. BTC’s progress was halted there, and now it sits below $79,000 as all eyes have turned to next week’s Fed decision.

Meanwhile, ETH skyrocketed to $2,660 earlier today for the first time in eight months, and now sits above $2,600 after a 6% weekly surge. ZEC, NEAR, DOT, and ICP have marked major gains on a 7-day scale as well.

Market Data

Cryptocurrency Market Overview Weekly, September 11. Source: QuantifyCrypto

Market Cap: $2.715T | 24H Vol: $87B | BTC Dominance: 57.1%

This Week’s Crypto Headlines You Can’t Miss

Senate Republicans Update CLARITY Act Before September 15 Vote. Aside from the FOMC meeting, the other major crypto-focused event next week on US soil will be the cloture vote on the CLARITY Act. Senate Republicans updated the bill, adding new rules for non-decentralized DeFi protocols and clarifying how credit unions can deal in crypto.

Bitcoin Whales Remain on the Sidelines Ahead of Chaotic 10 Days: What’s Coming? On-chain data ahead of the so-called chaotic 10 days of inflation data, CLARITY Act voting, Fed and BOJ decisions, showed that BTC whales had remained on the sidelines, showing no major accumulation or distribution activity.

Fake Trezor Warning Claims 25% of Devices Are Vulnerable in Latest Phishing Campaign. The hardware wallet maker can’t catch a break these days, as it just warned users about a phishing scam disguised as a security alert, claiming a vulnerability in STM32 microcontrollers, which was not sent by Trezor itself.

‘We Will Not Pay’: Blockstream Rejects 10% Bounty Demand From Liquid Hackers. The latest development in the self-described white-hat hack came earlier today when the victim, Blockstream, refused to pay the ransom for the stolen BTC from the Liquid Network, asserting that the incident constitutes theft, not responsible disclosure.

Trump’s $5K Proposal Could Ignite an ‘Insane’ Altcoin Season: Analyst. The POTUS continues to make the headlines with some spectacular claims, including a promise of a $5,000 payment for every American adult if Republicans win the midterm elections. If that happens, a crypto analyst predicted it would lead to an ‘insane’ altseason.

Shocking: Hunter Biden’s LAPTOP Meme Coin Crashes 99% Within Hours of Launch. Hunter Biden, the son of the former US President Joe Biden, released a LAPTOP meme coin earlier this week on the Base network. To the surprise of literally no one, the token crashed by over 99% within minutes of going live for trading.